Episode 36 :: Rogue One Six Months Later: The Great Anthology Experiment

One of the most exciting things to come from Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm was the chance to tell new Star Wars stories on the big screen - stories beyond the ever-continuing the episodic saga. Films exploring The Old Republic, Boba Fett finally having a chance to really earn that fan following, tales of smugglers, scoundrels, and smarmy aliens - anything is possible. The debut spin-off film, Rogue One, was a ballsy first foray into a bigger cinematic universe; and with that risk came a Hutt-load of trouble.

Rogue One released to great acclaim and profit, but what hasn't yet come out is the real story of what went on behind the scenes. In the months following the film's release, the rumors about drastic, character-reshaping reshoots have become more and more substantiated and fragmented clues about the movie's original narrative have been scattered like the dust of Alderaan across numerous filmmaker interviews. Was Rogue One a bad film saved at the last minute? A better movie made safer by focus groups? This film's production is a fascinating untold story, and in this episode we're assembling all the nuggets of insight we've collected.

Who was Sergent Jyn Erso? Was Krennic ever a competent villain? Who lived and who died between reshoot and release? Will we see more 🌿 and 🍒? And perhaps biggest of all, what do the struggles of Rogue One and the meltdown of the Han Solo film mean for the future of these experiments in Star Wars filmmaking?

For links and more info, head to the main episode page: https://nerdyshow.com/2017/07/state-empire-rogue-one-anthology-experiment